(1) Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to extruded molding pieces attachable to a wall to form a frame assembly thereon for the purpose of supporting a fabric covering sheet.
(2) State of the Prior Art
A number of systems and apparatus for supporting a fabric sheet on a surface, such as a wall, are known. Generally, known systems provide a number of extruded pieces which together form a frame mounted on a wall. The fabric sheet to be mounted on the frame then has its edges securely supported by the frame assembly formed by the extruded pieces.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,631,882 and 4,788,806 to Sease disclose such systems wherein two separate pieces are used together to secure the fabric in place. U.S. Pat. No. 4,731,960, also to Sease, discloses another such extrusion wherein the edges of the fabric are simply held between gripping teeth formed on portions of an extruded piece. Small spaces are provided for storing the leftover edge of the fabric being supported.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,018,260, 4,053,008, 4,151,672 and 4,161,977, all to Baslow, are related to frame assemblies for mounting fabric sheets. Baslow uses extruded members which provide a storage space in the extruded member for fabric, along with gripping teeth, but require the use of a spline to sufficiently support the fabric being stretched on a particular frame assembly. The Baslow U.S. Pat. No. 4,161,977 simply uses gripper teeth and a small storage space in a solid member for supporting a fabric sheet. There also exist U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,197,686 and 4,625,490, both also to Baslow, which disclose the use of extruded pieces forming a storage space between walls of the extruded pieces. The fabric is tucked into the storage space formed by the extruded piece by the use of an appropriate stuffing tool.
FIG. 1 discloses a further known extrusion. The extrusion of FIG. 1 is used in frame assemblies for fabric wall coverings for the purpose of providing a mid-wall support inside a frame assembly. This extrusion, noting FIG. 1, comprises a base wall 1 having upstanding walls 2 and 3 extending therefrom. The walls 2 and 3 form a cavity or space therebetween for the insertion of fabric material. The walls neck together to form an inlet at 4, whereat is provided a number of gripping teeth for gripping a fabric inserted therein.
FIG. 2 shows another known extrusion, which extrusion is used for an "outside" wall corner. That is, when a fabric is desired to be brought around a corner of a wall, an extrusion such as seen in FIG. 2 is used. Base portions 11 and 12 are attached to their respective walls so that the extrusion will form a corner piece. Walls 13 and 14, extending from base portions 11 and 12, respectively, extend out the desired distance away from the corner of the walls. At the ends of the walls 13 and 14 is provided a gripping portion 15 with a cavity 16. The walls 13 and 14 neck together at portions 17, and then extend back towards the corner of the walls, forming grippers 15 and the cavity wall 16 thereat. This extrusion is thus one continuous piece.
The extrusion illustrated in FIG. 1 suffers generally from the drawbacks of insufficient size and strength, and an insufficiently sized cavity C for the amount of fabric which may be required to be stuffed into the cavity C. This renders the extrusion with little versatility and adaptability. In many of today's applications, patterns of a fabric to be secured to a wall have repeating vertical patterns, which repeat every so often in the horizontal direction. At the mid-wall seam portion, it is desirable to match the particular position of the pattern of one fabric with the particular position of the pattern of the other fabric adjacent thereto. To do this, one or the other fabric may require significant lateral adjustment. Thus, a substantially large cavity C may be required.
The outside corner extrusion as seen in FIG. 2 suffers from a similar drawback as discussed with FIG. 1, in that the cavity C provided in FIG. 2 may be much too small to accept all of the fabric that may be required to be stuffed thereinto. Furthermore, positioning of the extrusion of FIG. 2 on a corner tends to be unreliable, since, due to the manner of connection of base portion 11 and wall 14 with base portion 12 and wall 13, the two sides of the extrusion can easily pivot about the inlet portion of the extrusion. Thus, when such an extrusion is attempted to be placed on the corner, the installer is never quite sure whether or not the extrusion is properly positioned. If the base portions 11 and 12 are attached too close to the corner moreover, the gripping portion 15 will not be adequately tight.